Lancaster’s Fish suffered two heavy defeats to York in the outdoor ultimate Frisbee, held on the Sunday afternoon. Whereas the indoor disc action took place on a sunny evening, fate would unfortunately dictate that the outdoor equivalent had to struggle through the wind and the rain.
York tend to historically have the advantage when it comes down to competitive saucer throwing, winning 2015’s events (held on Lancaster turf due to prior commitments) fairly comfortably. Although the Fish did their best to avenge this result, it was York who ultimately claimed the scalp in both the men’s and mixed fixtures.
Although the rain did not let off, it didn’t stop both teams enjoying the fixtures. It is arguably one of the most amicable sports of Roses, as there are no officials. Frisbeers (Frisbites? Frisbians?) in fact adjudicate themselves, and despite a few disagreements occurring, there is none of the referee haranguing you frequently see in other sports.
In the men’s match, York gained an early lead, but the flair and trickery that Lancaster had to offer immediately paid dividends courtesy of Gabriel McKenna’s spectacular dive to catch a Frisbee that many would have considered a lost cause. It was so incredible it drew applause from both sides. Sportsmanship at its finest.
Unfortunately for the Fish, they could only match one point for every two York seemed to score, so over the course of the match, they never found themselves level again. At one point York led 9-4, but the fans and squad were not disheartened. I’ll be honest, I have no idea how long this game went on for. Even a member of York’s mixed team didn’t know, saying “Last week we only played for 40 minutes, but apparently this is going on for 90.” Her lack of knowledge made me slightly more comfortable about my naïve inadequacy.
What I did know though, is that Lancaster wouldn’t give up without a fight. The second half proved more timid than the opening portion, and it was the home side that notched the first point in roughly 10 minutes, following some stellar defensive play. The supporters remained hopeful of a comeback, but York’s Liam and Steve were set on ruining this progress. Although Lancaster nicked another point back, York eventually ran out 15-6 winners. Near the end they were playing what can only be described as tiki taka Frisbee.
The Fish shouldn’t be disappointed by their performance, but they were simply outplayed by York’s depth and talent. The mixed squad fared no better sadly, losing 15-3 in worse conditions. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to find some old LP records to practise playing ultimate Frisbee.
